Arrangement for controlled dispatch of stored pneumatic tube carriers



United States Patent O 3,265,325 ARRANGEMENT FOR C(BNTROLLED DISPATCH F STGRED PNEUMATIC TUBE CARRIERS Fritz Euchwaid and Hans Kudritzki, Eerlin, Germany,

assignors to International Standard Electric Corpor tion, New York, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Fiied Oct. 21, 1964, Ser. No. 495,533 Claims priority, appiication Germany, Get. 31, 1963, St 21,256 11 (Ilaims. (Cl. 243-25) This invention relates to pneumatic-tube systems, and more particularly to a system arrangement wherein carriers can be stored and the foremost of several stored carriers can be dispatched from storage upon request.

Known arrangements for the dispatch of foremost carriers are vertically disposed systems in which carriers are inserted at the top and gravity-fed to a removable stop at the bottom. A second removable stop, in such systems, holds back all carriers except the foremost carrier so that the first stop can be removed and the foremost carrier released.

Such known arrangements require considerable construction height, so that a full depth of one or more floors is usually required. It is desirable to have an arrangement, for controlled dispatch of the foremost of stored carriers, requiring a minimal height.

It is, therefore, a general object of the present invention to provide a substantially horizontal arrangement, for controlled dispatch of stored pneumatic-tube carriers, using air suction means as an operating force to move and otherwise control the carriers.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a substantially horizontally disposed carrier dispatch arrangement using detour airlinesto brake, receive, and to advance carriers.

The novel feature of this invention, as set forth with particularity in the claims, is a detour airline which is used in controlling the number of carriers stored in the drive tube of the arrangement, to decelerate received carriers, and to dispatch foremost carriers.

The above-mentioned and other features and objects of this invention will become more apparent by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a schematic drawing of one embodiment of the invention and FIGURE 2 is a schematic drawing of a modified version of the embodiment of FIGURE 1.

In FIGURE 1 an input drive tube is shown, with three functional sections: 101, input section; 1b, storage section; and output section; and a detour airline 2 branching off therefrom and re-entering at point 3 near gate route or section 4. The section 4 may be a receiver of the pneumatic-tube system, a code detector, a central station or another system which is pneumatically disconnected from the drive tube 1. The use of a detour line as indicated 2 has the common purpose to reduce the speed of the carrier at the input section 111. If the carrier is moved slowly in said section, the detour airline 2 is not necessary. The detour airline has valves 5 and 6 at either side of the connection G leading to a source of air suction G. The drive tube 1 has a portion 7 which has a second detour airline 8 connected in parallel thereto. Said second airline Patented August 9,1965

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8 has a valve 9 interposed therein. A swivel-mounted, and thus retractable, stop 11 is inserted towards the output end of the drive tube portion 7. In front of this stop is a contact or switch 13. Another contact or switch 14 is positioned further back along the length of drive tube portion 7. Finally, another contact or switch 15 is provided near the beginning of the drive tube section 7. Each contact or switch 13, 14, or 15 is adapted to be actuated by a carrier in the tube adjacent thereto, and for this .purpose, such contact or switch may be provided with an operating arm extending into the tube so as to be mechanically actuated by a carrier. Near the contact or switch 13, a branch 12 is provided leading to the surrounding atmosphere via a controllable valve 16.

The valve and the stop may be electrically operated and controlled from a central control station, which can be remotely located, this station being electrically connected to all contacts. The central station controls these valves and the stop to provide the following operation:

In initial operation, stop 11 is first swivelled into the drive tube portion 7. Valves 6 and 9 are open, and valve 5 is closed; thus air suction operates to feed carriers to drive tube 1. Carriers arriving at tube portion 7 proceed down towards stop 11. Their travel is decelerated in that valve 9 is open and detour airline 3 shunts the air suction; a first carrier halts at stop 11, actuating switch (or contact) 13. Subsequent carriers are stored in line. As each a-ctuates contact 15, valve 9 is caused to close for a short time so as to shift all carriers against stop 11. When enough carriers are stored to hold contact 14 in the actuated position, dispatch of further carriers to storage is blocked. With the request of a foremost carrier, valve 16 is opened admitting air therethrough. Valve 9 is closed, and stop 11 is retracted. The admitted air operates mainly in the advancing direction, as the thick arrow indicates. A portion of the air impacts against the stored carriers to hold them in position. The foremost carrier is advanced and dispatched. Contact 13 being released, stop 11 re-in-serts, valve 16 closes and valve 9 reopens. As the number of carriers stored is such as to hold contact 14 in constant actuation, valves 6 and 9 are closed and valve 5 is opened to shunt the air suction around drive tube 1, halting further feed of carriers beyond the input point. Also, a signal is conveyed to dispatching points, which signal blocks the dispatch of further carriers to storage. When the foremost carrier is requested, stop 11 is swivelled out either by a central reporting point or by a station having requested the carrier. Valve 5 is closed and valves 6 and 9 are opened. Open valves 6 and 9 cause the air suction to act on the foremost carrier just released and dispatch it along to and through gate route 4. Contact 13, then, is released and upon its release it causes stop 11 to insert itself into the tube. The last-stored carrier advances, with all stored carriers, down drive tube portion 7, releasing contact 14. Upon the release of contact 14, the blocking signal sent to dispatching points is halted; hence, at least one more carrier can be accepted for storage. The advance of all carriers down drive tube portion 7 causes contact 13 to be actuated; this causes stop 11 to be inserted. When one more carrier is stored, contact 14 is again actuated, closing valves 6 and 9 and opening valve 5. With the next request for a foremost carrier, the foregoing cycle is repeated.

FIGURE 2 shows a modification of the embodiment of FIGURE 1 wherein the branch outlet 12 is not used. Instead, the connecting points of the detour airlines 2 and 8 are shifted slightly. Detour airline 2 is branched off downstream from detour airline 8, and detour airline 8 re-enters ahead of the stop 11. In initial operation, valve 9 is closed and valve is open. An arriving carrier is led towards stop 11, actuating contact 13. Actuation of contact 13 causes valve 9 to open and valve 5 to close and simultaneously signals the availability of a carrier to a central reporting point or to other stations. A subsequently received carrier actuates contact 15, which in turn closes valve 9 and opens valve 5. Thus the air suction impels said carrier forward and against the preceding carrier (which is halted at stop 11). When a foremost carrier is requested, a timing circuit opens valve 9 again, closes valve 5 and retracts stop 11. Thus, the foremost carrier is conveyed out of the drive-tube storage area. The succeeding carriers do not travel behind the foremost carrier, as no air impacts on them. The air is shunted around them via detour airline 8. With contact 13 in the released position, stop 11 is caused to re-insert, and valve 9 is closed again and valve 5 is opened.

While we have described the structure of this invention in connection with specific embodiments thereof, it is to be clearly understood that this description is made only by way of example and not as a limitation to the scope of our invention, as set forth in the accompanying claims.

What we claim is:

1. In a system for controlled dispatch of stored pneumatic tube carriers, an arrangement for controlled storage of said carriers, comprising:

a substantially horizontal drive tube, said drive tube having input and output sections and a storage section therebetween;

a first means, normally inoperative, including a first detour air line connected to said drive tube between a point adjacent to the juncture of said input section and said storage section and said output section, for halting input of carriers for storage;

a source of air suction connected to said first detour air line;

a second means, normally operative, including a second detour air line shunt-connected to said drive tube substantially across said storage section, for controlling the movement of carriers into storage; and

a third means, responsive to a capacity storage of carriers, to render said first means operative, and to render said second means inoperative.

2. In a system for controlled dispatch of stored pneumatic tube carriers, an arrangement for controlled storage of said carriers, comprising:

a substantially horizontal drive tube, said drive tube having input and output sections and a storage section therebetween;

a first detour air line connected to said drive tube between a point adjacent to the juncture of said input and storage sections and said output section;

a source of air suction connected to said first detour air line;

a second detour air line shunt-connected to said drive tube, substantially across said storage section;

valve means, connected to said first and second detour air lines, to control passage of air suction therethrough;

stop means, connected to said storage section near said output section, to halt through passage of carriers;

contact means, connected to said storage section, to

sense carrier storage status therein; and

central control means, connected to said valve means, stop means, and contact means, and responsive to said contact means, to operatively control said valve means and said stop means.

.3. In a system for controlled dispatch of stored pneumatic tube carriers, an arrangement for controlled storage of said carriers, comprising:

a substantially horizontal drive tube, said drive tube having input and output sections and a storage section therebetween;

a first detour air line connected to said drive tube between a point adjacent to the juncture of said input section and said storage section, and said output section;

a source of air suction connected to said first detour air line;

a second detour air line shunt-connected to said drive tube substantially across said storage section;

a first valve means, normally closed according to one mode of operation, connected to said first detour air line, between said source and said input section, to control passage of air suction therethrough;

a second valve means, normally open according to said one mode of operation, connected to said first detour air line, between said source and said output section, to control passage of air suction therethrough;

a third valve means, normally open according to said one mode of operation, connected to said second detour air line to control passage of air suction therethrough;

stop means, connected to said storage section near said output section, to halt through passage of carriers;

contact means, connected to said storage section, to

sense carrier storage status therein; and

central control means, connected to all of said means,

to alter said mode of operation.

4. An arrangement, according to claim 3, wherein:

said central control means include means'to open said first valve means and to close said second and third valve means, according to a mode of operation difiering from said one mode of operation.

5. An arrangement, according to claim 4, wherein:

said stop means include a retractable stop interposed in said storage section immediately adjacent to said output section; and further comprises a valve-controlled branch opening in said storage section spaced the length of a carrier away from said stop, toward said input section.

6. An arrangement, according to claim 5, wherein:

said contact means include a lurality of contacts, and wherein one contact of said plurality is interposed in said storage section between said stop and said branch opening.

7. An arrangement, according to claim 5, wherein:

said control means include timing means.

8. An arrangement, according to claim 3, further comprising:

gating means interposed in said output section.

9. An arrangement, according to claim 5, wherein:

said valve-controlled branch opening directs air taken in bi-directionally.

10. An arrangement, according to claim 7, wherein:

said timing means operatively alters the functional effect of said third valve means for a short period of time.

11. In a system for controlled dispatch of stored pneumatic tube carriers, an arrangement for controlled release from storage and dispatch of a foremost carrier, comprising:

a substantially horizontal drive tube, said drive tube having input and output sections and a storage section therebetween;

a first detour air line connected to said drive tube between a point adjacent to the juncture of said input and storage sections and said output section;

a source of air suction connected to said first detour air line;

a second detour air line shunt-connected to said drive tube, substantially across said storage section;

valve means, connected to said first and second detour air lines, to control passage of air suction there- References Cited by the Examiner through; UNITED STATES PATENTS stop means, connected to said storage section near said output section, to halt through passage of carriers; 3,104,078 9/1963 Buchwald et a1 contact means, connected to said storage section, to 5 3,201,062 8/1965 Mach et a1 243 -1 sense carrier storage status therein; and FOREIGN PATENTS central control means, connected to said valve means,

stop means, and contact means, to operate said stop 11167747 10/1962 Germany means so as to release a foremost carrier from stor- EVON C BLUNK Primary Examiner age, and to operate said valve means so as to dispatch 10 said released foremost carrier. ANDRES NIELsEN, Examiner- 

1. IN A SYSTEM FOR CONTROLLED DISPATCH OF STORED PNEUMATIC TUBE CARRIERS, AN ARRANGEMENT FOR C ONTROLLED STORAGE OF SAID CARRIERS, COMPRISING: A SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL DRIVE TUBE, SAID DRIVE TUBE HAVING INPUT AND OUTPUT SECTIONS AND A STORAGE SECTION THEREBETWEEN; A FIRST MEANS, NORMALLY INOPERATIVE, INCLUDING A FIRST DETOUR AIR LINE CONNECTED TO SAID DRIVE TUBE BETWEEN A POINT ADJACENT TO THE JUNCTURE OF SAID INPUT SECTION AND SAID STORAGE SECTION AND SAID OUTPUT SECTION, FOR HALTING INPUT OF CARRIERS FOR STORAGE; A SOURCE OF AIR SUCTION CONNECTED TO SAID FIRST DETOUR AIR LINE; A SECOND MEANS, NORMALLY OPERATIVE, INCLUDING A SECOND DETOUR AIR LINE SHUNT-CONNECTED TO SAID DRIVE TUBE SUBSTANTIALLY ACROSS SAID STORAGE SECTION, FOR CONTROLLING THE MOVEMENT OF CARRIERS INTO STORAGE; AND A THIRD MEANS, RESPONSIVE TO A CAPACITY STORAGE OF CARRIERS, TO RENDER SAID FIRST MEANS OPERATIVE, AND TO RENDER SAID SECOND MEANS INOPERATIVE. 